MBA: Mortgage applications decrease
U.S. mortgage applications fell for the first time in four weeks due to a decline in home purchase loans, as interest rates increased for the first time since November, an industry trade group said Wednesday.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity for the week ended Jan. 27 decreased 5.1 percent to 626.8 from the previous week’s 660.5.
The fall was most pronounced in loans to buy homes. The group’s seasonally adjusted purchase mortgage index declined 8 percent to 435.7 from the previous week’s 473.7. The index is considered a timely gauge on U.S. home sales.
U.S. mortgage applications down
The Mortgage Bankers Association said that for the week ending Jan. 27 its index of mortgage activity fell to 626.8 from 660.5 in the previous seven-day period.
On an unadjusted basis, the group’s index was down 12.1 percent compared with the same week one year earlier.
Caveat Emptor!
Grim
…And the slide will continue. 10 yr. Treasury Note yielding 4.55% today
It will be interesting to see the impact on the 10Y UST bond when the long bond is reintroduced next week. Ultimately, it shouldn’t materially dislocate anything. However, it is always good to have another pricing bond out there so that some attention gets pulled away from the Ten. If the market sells the Ten off through 5%, it should really “shut up” someone of these real estate bulls. Everyone’s bullish forecasts are built on sub-7% 30Y fixed mortgages.
30-Year Treasury Bonds Return Feb. 9
The long bond is back!
The Treasury Department announced Wednesday that it will have its first sale of 30-year bonds on Feb. 9, bringing back a debt security it had discontinued issuing five years ago when the government’s finances were in better shape.
But faced with soaring budget deficits, the government has decided to bring back the 30-year bond.
Treasury officials said they will sell $14 billion in 30-year bonds on Feb. 9 as part of $48 billion in new securities scheduled to be sold next week to raise money to pay the government’s bills
U.S. pending home sales index drops in December
Pending sales of U.S. homes dropped in December to the lowest point in almost two years, extending a months-long slide as the housing market shows signs of sustained cooling, a trade group said on Wednesday.
The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in December, stood at 116.4, down 3.0 percent from November and 5.5 percent below a year ago.
December’s level marked the lowest point for the index since February 2004, when it hit 111.6, the Realtors said. It also may indicate a decline in home sales for January and February.
November’s index level was revised down to 120.0 from an originally reported 120.6.
The Pending Home Sales Index includes pending sales of existing single-family units, condominiums and co-ops. A home sale is pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed. Pending sales will typically close within one or two months of contract signing.
grim
The Yield Curve just inverted again!!!
2 Year 4.57%
10 Year 4.56%
http://tinyurl.com/av8wa
Did anyone else see the Daily Show’s “Irationally Exuberant Tribut to Alan Greenspan” last night?
They had a laugh on the bubble and mentioned it by name. The reported pulled out a crystal ball and it showed a desert landscape with a shack. He told Jon Steward that it was Midtown Manhattan :)
To prove that it was in the future, they zoomed in on the crystal ball picture to show the reporter in a hover-car..
Funny stuff, if a comedy show lists the housing bubble as one of Bernanke’s prime challenges, I think it is REALLY time to start worrying. Ever hear the maxim, “It is funny, because it is true.”?
The first half of the tribute can be found here:
http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/videos/headlines/index.jhtml
Unfortunately, it doesnt have the reporter and the housing bubble references.